The change in seasons is special. We go from snow shoveling to road construction here in Wisconsin. Now that snow shoveling is coming back I also really enjoy my morning cup of Joe. It's the little things in life that make you happy, and the smell of fresh ground beans and great coffee filling the pot is something I have to stop and inhale deeply!!!

So now that we have sub-80's temps I pulled out some chicken stock I had frozen away and am making soup and fresh french bread.... I put cumin in the soup which I have never tried before. I bought it for a chipotle aioli sauce I used on grilled tuna steaks two days ago, and I was putting it away and smelled it and thought wow, that zing might go good in chicken soup!

Now do I put noodles or rice in the soup? Or maybe even some frozen hash brown potatoes? I guess I could shred some potatoes but then I'd have to blanch them to get some of the starch out methinks.... Any thoughts on your favorite chicken soup ingredients?

I ended up putting in wide egg noodles and pre-cooking and rinsing the starch off them. The soup was the best chicken soup I have ever made! I need to write down what I did. Problem is, I never measure anything, so I'll have to estimate what I used....